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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Eyada" data-source="post: 4360492" data-attributes="member: 59589">First, you are correct. Characters do not die when they lose all of their HP. They suffer a potentially fatal blow that causes them to fall in battle. They don't die until they've failed three Death Saves or been run through while helplessly bleeding out.Yes, the D&D combat system is abstract. Disarm, along with many other perfectly viable tactics, are all hidden within the abstract mechanics. It is assumed that a trained warrior is always attempting to do potentially battle-ending things like disarm, or called shot. However, unless you choose to exercise the narrative control granted by Powers (ie, using the Fighter power that causes an opponent to be disarmed), the system assumes your opponent is successful in resisting those attempts. When you break your opponent and reduce them to 0 HP, you can feel free to take narrative license and decide that you defeat him via disarm, or any other realistic means.-In 4E your ability to defend yourself does increase by level. Parrying/locking weapons is assumed to be happening constantly. Unlike 3.x, a high level warrior will be so skilled with his weapon that he can easily avoid the attacks of a low level character, even without wearing armor. As it should be.-Wizards are not as effective with swords as fighters are. Wizards are not proficient with swords, and require Feats to wield them as effectively as Fighters do.Disarm was abstracted away into the combat mechanics because allowing universal narrative license to perform such a feat adds more negatives to the system than positives. It's as simple as that. I'm sorry if this bothers you. However, I'm sure if you sat down and critically re-examined 3.x, you would find numerous similar mechanics. The only reason you are bothered by the lack of a defined disarm option is because 3.x gave all characters the narrative license to force a disarm during battle; unfortunately, time has shown that such a feature detracts more from the system than it adds, so it was removed from 4E.</blockquote>

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